that's kkkkkkkkkkOLD!!!

time to snuggle up under several blankets with a hot toddy. ever had hot spiced wine? really good - with cinnamon and ginger and stuff in it?

just what you need about now. i had some in switzerland for new years night one year.... and another time at an outdoor market in london - in january right around new years... again quite cold. that stuff hits the spot.

((( warm hugs )))

~ waves ~

Colder in Florida than Alaska and Greenland
The sharp kink in the jet stream has brought record warm temperatures to a few stations in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest this week, making much of coastal Alaska warmer than Florida. Cold Bay, Alaska, set a record high yesterday of 47°F, after recording a low temperature of 30°F. This made Cold Bay warmer than Pensacola, Florida, which had a high of 47°F and a low of 24°F. In fact, most of Florida--including Jacksonville, Tampa, Melbourne, and Tallahassee--recorded lows at or below the 27°F low recorded in Anchorage, Alaska yesterday. The jet stream kink has also brought temperatures more than 30°F above average to Greenland. The temperature in Narsarsuaq, Greenland at 10am EST today was 46°F, far warmer than most of Florida.

this is wild!!!!!

i get the feeling more than just iguanas are gonna be in trouble.

the first perhaps obvious thing i'm thinking of is the oranges. but i wonder how many other subtle effects there are on the ecosystems of these places....



~ waves ~

It's 11 degrees here now with windchill of -6... yep, that's a negative... we have about 7 inches of snow calling for 2 to 3 more inches in the next couple of days... But these are normal things around here for this time of year.

burrrr!!!! abbie,
hope you are staying warm!
bizi

HI,

I looked it up.
Manatees gather in warm / hot springs or near power plants that turn on heat for them. The manatees need a minimum temp of 61 degrees to survive.


Iguanas can't make it if the temp stays below 40 for two or three days. We have had cool nights near 40 below for what seems like a week but the days have been warmer than that. The iguanas are an invasive species and are cute in an ugly way but are also considered pests.


Sea turtles become immobilized when the temp is 60F. They bob to the surface of the water. They can go into shock and get pneumonia. Some turtles have been rescued and are getting treatment.


Alligators can hibernate in "dens" during cold season. They keep their noses above the water.

I didn't feel like looking up snakes. They seem like a primitive species that can survive with out my attention.

=-=-=

Oranges were picked in most places before the weather came in. Oranges can survive a night or two of cold temps. Most areas were expected to be ok last I heard.

Strawberries, tomatoes, and others, are still threatened, depending on future weather I think.



M.

26 this morning wind chill 11......off I go to start my day...no snow thank goodness. bizi

Dear Bizi,
Stay warm.

M.

Thank you Steve!

(reposting links/info here from the checkin thread...)

Wikipedia has an extensive page on this, with references.
Wikipedia - El Niño-Southern Oscillation

Here are just a few tidbits:
Here's a page from The Franklin Institute Science Museum dating back to the 1997/8 episode of El Niño, that makes an interesting point:
El Niño: Hot Air over Hot Water

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) has two brief pages dedicated to El Niño and the complementary La Niña phenomena
NOAA El Niño Page
NOAA La Niña Page

~ waves ~

also from NOAA -

Tropical Pacific Sea Surface Temperature Animation


Weekly averaged sea surface temperatures (SST) in °C for the past twelve weeks.




Weekly averaged anomalies in °C for the past twelve weeks.

Note that 30 °C is 86 °F ... pretty warm for surface water out in the Pacific!